Test results: 12 local schools exceed academic growth goals

The state board of education has released a snapshot of student performance for individual schools, school districts and the state, bringing with it good and bad news.

By NANCY TANKERTimes-News Staff Writer

The state board of education has released a snapshot of student performance for individual schools, school districts and the state, bringing with it good and bad news. Henderson County students fared better than state averages on the most recent round of tests, ranking 12th of out of state's 115 school systems. The overall student proficiency rate for Henderson County students taking end-of-grade and end-of-course tests was 53.5 percent, compared to the state's overall proficiency rate of 44.7 percent. The student proficiency rate for the school district, however, was 53.5 percent.Results of the new READY Accountability assessment of student progress were released Thursday for the first time. This year, students worked under the new Common Core State and N.C. Essential Standards, which includes English, math and science, and then took more rigorous exams than in previous years, so school officials expected a dip in test scores. “We're not happy with the percent proficient in the performance composite, but any time the state changes the curriculum standards and we have new assessments, there has traditionally been a dip in student performance,” said Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Kathy Revis. “That's not an excuse, and we're not looking for excuses. Our relative position in the state is good, but we're not happy with having 53.5 percent proficient as a performance composite. We have a lot more work to do.”The test scores measure, among other things, each school's proficiency rates, also known as a “performance composite,” and whether the school meets or exceeds goals for growth in student performance. “Based on students' past performance, the (state) formula predicts where they should score the following year,” Revis said. “When students exceed that score, it means students have excelled in their growth from what they were predicted to score.”Seven of 13 elementary schools exceeded expectations, three met expectations, and three did not meet expectations. At the middle school level, three of four schools exceeded expectations, and one met expectations. Two high schools exceeded expectations, two met expectations, and two did not meet expectations. “This year's test results represent “a baseline year for that performance composite,” Revis said. “For parents, the best predictor of how your kid's school is doing would be growth. After this year, our baseline year, parents will want to look at both the performance composite and growth standards.”Revis said individual testing results for students should arrive in mid-November. “I want parents to understand that these are new assessments with more rigorous standards and it's likely that the students will not score as well as they traditionally scored,” she said, adding that the test scores have no bearing on whether or not a student will be promoted to the next grade level.According to Sara Clark, public information officer at the N.C. Department of Public Instruction, “In the past our curriculum standards were set more for making sure children were prepared for the next grade level, or course. Our new standards focus more on making sure students are prepared for college and a career, so in making this shift, these new standards are more challenging and the assessments we developed to align with the standards are more challenging, but that is what it takes to prepare students for college and a career.”She expects test score gains next year “because many teachers will have had more than one year teaching the new standards under their belt.”Hendersonville Middle Principal Jenny Moreno pointed out that “12 schools in Henderson County exceeded what the state said was their expected growth.” Her school was one of those. “We're very excited that we're showing growth from one year to the next.”“The test itself was much more rigorous than it had been in the past, and we think that's a good thing,” she added. “Materials were more complex, with more emphasis on critical thinking” rather that rote memorization.“Our eighth-grade science scores were fourth in the state out of 115 in the system,” Moreno said. Students also had the eighth-highest performance in fourth-grade math, the ninth-highest performance in in fourth-grade reading and the 10th-highest performance in fifth-grade reading. “There's an opportunity for us to continue what we're doing and having higher standards for our kids,” Moreno said. “We think that's important.” At Clear Creek Elementary, Principal Lynn Metcalf said that, “Based on the results, our kids did great. The test was different for the students this year, and I think we performed well considering that.”Matthew Johnson, principal at Atkinson Elementary, said he was proud that his students ranked more proficient than the county average. “We're very pleased to have been named as a school that exceeds expected performance growth. I think it's a great testament to our teachers and staff here at Atkinson in terms of our staff assisting students and providing them with instruction in the classroom to meet and exceed their needs,” he said. “They're just very committed, and our students are doing a great job each and every day in the classroom.”Here is how Henderson County public schools fared on their performance composites and school-wide growth assessments:Elementary schools --Atkinson Elementary, 59.5 percent, exceeds--Bruce Drysdale Elementary, 38.5 percent, exceeds--Clear Creek Elementary, 65.6 percent, exceeds--Dana Elementary, 49.2 percent, not met--Edneyville Elementary, 34.5 percent, not met--Etowah Elementary, 67.1 percent, met--Fletcher Elementary, 61.4 percent, not met--Hendersonville Elementary, 59.9 percent, exceeds--Hillandale Elementary, 48.5 percent, met--Glenn C. Marlow Elementary, 72.5 percent, exceeds--Mills River Elementary, 60.1 percent, exceeds--Sugarloaf Elementary, 44.5 percent, met--Upward Elementary, 47.3 percent, exceedsMiddle Schools--Apple Valley Middle School, 44.2 percent, met--Flat Rock Middle School, 53.4 percent, exceeds--Hendersonville Middle School, 58.3 percent, exceeds--Rugby Middle School, 62.3 percent, exceedsHigh schools -Balfour Education Center, 11.9 percent, not met--Henderson County Early College, 76.0 percent, exceeds--East Henderson High School, 46.7 percent, met--Henderson High School, 55.2 percent, met--North Henderson High School, 48.8 percent, exceeds--West Henderson High School, 48.7 percent, not metReach Tanker at 828-694-7871 or nancy.tanker@blueridgenow.com.

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